Question about privacy and using an existing SIM

BraX3
1

As I’m preparing myself to set up our Brax3s and was thinking about the SIM I’ve been using being known to be mine.
I assume that to be the case.
(Wife has no SIM but uses wifi)

I’m in Central America and my home internet router with wifi is in my name with a local carrier, I use a “made for latin market” Chinese phone (Android with Google), and Amazon Firestick and YouTube app, both signed in with my name.

Am I right to think the SIM card is the same? I mean, obviously the account through our local carrier is in my name, but does is it known to the same actors that we’re trying to get away from here?

I ask because I feel it’s best to assume. And that said, while watching Rob’s set up video again, it occured to me that he didn’t address the sim card except to say how to install it.

I’ve been thinking I should start fresh, with exception of my carrier, by getting new SIM cards for our new phones.

(Note: any unlocked phone from the IS works here so I expect the Brax3 to work fine)

If I set up my Brax3 using my existing SIM doesn’t that mean that the phone will be known to be mine?

I’m curious if I shouldn’t disable wifi and get new SIMs to start fresh.

If I do that I’ll likely have to start two new data plans, use their SIMs, and then return at a later date and cancel the plan for the existing phone.

I’m just looking to keep is out of Google’s claws on our new phones and am not sure I understand how far I need to go.

I’d love to hear what some smarter people think.

Thanks all.

Edit: I plan to continue to use the current phone at home on wifi.

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Using current Sim card
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I think this is a a valid question…be great to hear others responses/feed back :slight_smile:

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the same actors that we’re trying to get away from here

I’m not sure what you mean by that exactly.
The phone will help you protect your data and identity from invasive big tech.

Your carrier (whoever it is) will see that your SIM card is installed on a device with a specific unique IMEI. If they have tied your SIM card with your identity, which seems to be the case, they will know that you are using the phone that you’re using.

If you’d like your SIM not to get tied to your identity, you need to change SIM providers. In some countries, you’re able to buy a SIM anonymously. In others - you can’t.

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Yeah, that’s what I meant.
I eventually found my answer from a Naomi Brockwell video.

I don’t think I can get a sim anonymously here, but I may have a way. :slight_smile:

Thanks for the reply.
Will look into anonymously purchased sims.

Next question…and this may not be one you can answer…

Is their an ESIM that one can buy anonymously? I mean with a virtual credit card or something not tied to you, or is that not made possible by the sellers of such things?

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7

The same issue remains: you are needing to get onto a local carrier’s network. You would need an eSIM from them to use their network. If they require your personal information for registration then that is that, there isn’t a way around it. Maybe you can find a satellite provider as an alternative. But the fact is that to use a network you have to be approved by the network you are using, and that means their policies for getting approval.

On this note, personally I would be a bit more concerned about the Amazon and Google logins used by your other devices if you are wanting to protect your privacy. But again this comes back to what @plamen is noting, privacy from whom? Each has their answer to this question, but not all are the same answer :slight_smile:

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I don’t have any other devices. When I was stuck having my Graphene brick itself on me overnight and I had to get a phone I found my options were limited to Google phones. When setting it up I ended up needing an actual Gmail. Someone else put my name on the Amazon Firestick. My name is on the home internet.

Other than that I’m good.

What I’d like to do is get a new to me sim with as few as possible people knowing it’s mine.
I plan to keep using this Chinese phone at home and keeping the Brax3 separated from the home wifi and my existing data plan.

I’m assuming once they’ve names me they can see who my cell data provider is, regardless of whether they share info with them.
Meaning that a new account with Sims only will not be “reported” to them, so despite the cell provider knowing who I am, big tech doesn’t now JUST from my using it.

Hope that makes sense.

Thanks for your response.

1 Like
9

Hello, not to beat a dead horse but… If you previously installad and connected a SIM card which tied your identity to the IMEI, would switching SIM cards associate the IMEI to the new (anonymous) SIM card? Are the identifiable elemets stored and cross-referenced?

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That’s kinda what I was getting at in the first place.
What I wanted to know is IF the sim was connected to my name and not just my cell account. Then putting it in the new phone would connect my name to the phone.

I don’t have my phone yet. I was asking because I wanted to be sure that would be the case so I would not do that.

What I wasn’t sure of is how far my name went with the sim.

I know it’s on the account where I bought the sim and pay monthly for service. But did that alone mean google had it? No.

BUT, since I had been signed into a Google account using that sim, THEN did google attribute the sim to me. I believe the answer is yes.

So before putting any sim into the new phone I want to get a new sim. Sure the cell service will be in my name, but Google doesn’t question a third world provider to ask who’s account the sim was purchased under.

But if I sign into Google anything again they’ll know the sim and the new IMEI are mine.

Back to square one.

So because I signed in with this sim on this Chinese spyware phone, google knows them both.

Will they know the new IMEI on the Brax3 the minute I’m using it on the old sim, whether I’ve signed into a Google account on the phone or not. That was the intent of the question.

The carrier knows my name…
Current home Google knows IMEI.
If I use the old sim will they recognize the traffic and attribute the new IMEI to me.

That was my assumption and I believe that is the case.

So new SIM and new Brax3 IMEI will make me more obscure, so long as I don’t use the same wifi I had been using.

I’ve decided to keep this Chinese spyware phone for home wife use, which is the majority of it anyway.
So I’ll have the Brax3 on a new sim (in my name) but as far as google is concerned the old one is still functional for a while. I’ll cancel that sim later, after I get the Brax3 set up.

Now as far as use habits, the websites I go to, whatever…they may figure out it’s me later but I can use the Brax3 differently if I continue to have the current phone.

I am not anonymous now, but there’s no reason they have to know I have two phones from the beginning.

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11

This dropped today.

There’s some related info about sims and how the radios work.

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12

That is a good video. To me, the bottom line is if you operate on their networks and they want to know bad enough, they can find/identity you. I will try to not make it easy for them.

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13

Exactly.

I’m just trying to understand the particulars so I can make informed decisions about what serves ME best.

I just don’t know all the nomenclature of the various parts that come into play and I wasn’t very clearly making my point.

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I thought this was pretty helpful the way it laid out the options:

How To Use a SIM Card and Stay Anonymous

Seems up to personal preference ultimately.

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15

This is exactly the confirmation of information I was looking for…days ago. Lol

Thanks. This explains it all very well.

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Yeah, I thought it laid it out well too. Glad it helped.

I also saw another simular chat in this forum about this here:

This discussion has video links and some great input.

Good to have all the info you can get in order to make the best decision for your needs. I think this forum is a great resource. Use the search icon up at the top & search terms &, likely, someone has already discusses it & found an answer.

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